Downhole burner system deployment for thermal treatment of subterranean geologic formation has significant advantages. Such burner deployment facilitates secondary recovery of heavy crude, initiation of in situ combustion, retorting, and like processes. However, the operating environments are frequently severe in such downhole locations, such burner systems must be remotely operated, and the burner system should be capable of prolonged operation without maintenance as it is difficult to retrieve burner systems from such locations. For these several reasons, burner systems for such applications desirably are simple, sturdy, and reliable. A particularly vulnerable component of the burner system is the combustion chamber liner. Combustion chambers are conventionally lined with refractory material in the form of discrete segments. Such combustion chamber liners are subjected to severe thermal stresses both during operation of the system and start up and cool down sequences, and frequently fail.